Niagara
University will present a full slate of service and awareness activities
beginning Monday, Jan. 21, in observance of the federal holiday that marks the
birthday of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.

The
event schedule, which includes community service projects, voter registration
services and lectures on social justice, is highlighted by a keynote speech
delivered by Federal Magistrate Judge Hugh B. Scott, a 1971 graduate of Niagara
University and a member of the university's board of trustees.

9 a.m. to 4 p.m. - Sustainable Sandals Service
Activity

Niagara
University's Institute for Civic Engagement is hosting a service-learning
activity to support the Sustainable Sandals project, which annually distributes
hundreds of thousands of gently worn sandals from the Cave of the Winds to
impoverished areas across the globe. Volunteers, including a group from
Opportunities Unlimited of Niagara, will process the sandals in the front gym
of the Kiernan Center. Snacks and refreshments will be provided. To join, stop
by or call 716-286-8510.

9 a.m. to 5 p.m. - Martin Luther King Jr. Fact &
Photo Exhibition

Bisgrove
Hall's Glynn Family Atrium will be decorated with an assortment of posters and
images highlighting pertinent facts relating to Dr. Martin Luther King and his
legacy.

10 a.m. to 4 p.m. - Voter Registration

Providing
all people, regardless of color, with the right (and means) to vote was among
Dr. Martin Luther King's successes. To commemorate his efforts, Niagara
University is inviting community members to stop by the Gallagher Center's
lower level to register to vote.

10 a.m. to 2 p.m. - Youth Program

More
than 65 local schoolchildren will spend much of their day immersed in a series
of activities on Niagara University's campus. Their time on Monteagle Ridge will
include participation in the Sustainable Sandals project, as well as a campus
tour, a Q-and-A session with current Niagara students, and a reading activity
and book giveaway co-sponsored by the Scholastic Books Family and Community
Engagement Program.

6:30 p.m. - Keynote Address and Mini Concert

Judge
Scott's presentation will be preceded by an abbreviated musical performance by
the gospel choir from St. Martin de Porres Catholic Church in Buffalo.

On Thursday, Jan. 24, Ted Gong, founder
and co-chair of the 1882 Project, will address the Chinese Exclusion Act of
1882, its consequences and the process by which the 1882 Project mobilized a
national movement to obtain Senate and House resolutions acknowledging the
injustice of the laws. The event will take place at 6:30 p.m. in the Castellani
Art Museum.

One
day later, Dr. Michael Durfee, instructor of urban history, will offer a
presentation on rethinking the current state of affirmative action, and discuss
the Civil Rights movement and its effects on American society. Durfee's lecture
is scheduled for Friday at 1:25 p.m.
in the Gallagher Center's multipurpose room.

All week, the
Castellani Art Museum at Niagara University will host an exhibit that documents
various points in the history of Chinese Americans, including the 1882 Project,
a nonpartisan, grassroots effort to address the Chinese Exclusion Act of 1882.

In
addition, Niagara University will place two food collection bins on the
Gallagher Center's lower level throughout
the week. All students, faculty and staff are encouraged to donate
nonperishable food items, which will be brought to the Food Bank of Western New
York to assist needy local families.

For
more information, contact Niagara University's Office of Multicultural
International Students Affairs at 716-286-8510
or [email protected].